Field of the Disclosure
Examples of the present disclosure are related to bead lock systems and methods. More particularly, embodiments relate to a bead lock system with a wheel center and a bead lock ring, wherein threaded holes in the wheel center are configured to align with pass through holes in the bead lock ring, and pass through holes in the wheel center are configured to align with threaded holes in the bead lock ring.
Background
A model vehicle or toy vehicle is a miniature representation of an automobile or other vehicle. Conventionally, scaled miniatures of real production vehicles are created and distributed as kits. Over time, kits have been created with incredible levels of accuracy, wherein the kits include detail and parts unseen when the model is complete.
One such area of accuracy is on the wheel hub assembly of the model vehicle. Conventionally, a wheel hub assembly is an automotive part used in most vehicles, which is used to mount a wheel on the vehicle. A bead lock is a mechanical device that secures the bead of a tire to the wheel hub of a vehicle. Tires and wheels are design so that, when the tire is inflated or filled with foam, the tire pressure pushes the bead of the tire against the inside of the wheel so that the tire stays on the wheel, allowing the two to rotate together. In situations where tire pressure is insufficient to hold the tire in place, a bead lock is needed. Bead locks include a ring with a number of bolts around the circumference of the ring. The bolts are used to clamp the tire to the wheel.
Conventionally, when mounting a scaled tire to a bead lock wheel, multi-piece wheels are used. In the multi-piece wheels, a first portion may be a bead lock wheel and a second portion may be a bead lock ring. In conventional kits, there may only be a few screws that are used to couple the first and second portion of the wheel. However, for modeling purposes, utilizing only a few screws does not create a realistic scaled model because a 1:1 bead lock wheel and ring utilizes many nuts and bolts.
Another option when mounting a scaled tire to a bead lock wheel is to utilize a bead lock wheel and bead lock ring with many screws that are threaded through the bead lock wheel and the bead lock ring. However, requiring many full screws to be fully threaded through the bead lock wheel and the bead lock ring greatly increases the time required to assemble and disassemble the scaled model.
Accordingly, needs exist for more effective and efficient systems and methods for creating scaled models of bead lock wheel lines.